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A simple but handy cupcake stand

I must admit I am a terrible cook in most areas, aside for the one exception of baking. I absolutely love to bake, it is one of my favourite hobbies and I have amassed quite a collection of baking equipment and handy little gadgets. The craze for cupcakes is still going strong in the baking world and they are one of my favourite things to make. I desperately wanted some sort of fancy stand to display my cupcakes on and this ProTeam Cupcake Stand seemed like it would do the job. It cost me a reasonable £5.99 from www.amazon.co.uk which is a good saving on the £12.99 RRP.

When I received my order and opened the box I found that it was stored in several sections which then simply slot together to form the stand. This is very useful as it means that you can fold it down after use and store it away flat rather than having to find the space to keep it in its fully built up shape. This is also handy for when I've baked something for a friend as when I visit them I can take the stand along with me. I find this compact storage very useful and it is more practical than a one-piece stand.

The design of the stand is simple but attractive. It features swirling metal sections in four tiers, with offset individual holders so that you can choose the perfect placement and arrange your cupcakes in an aesthetically pleasing manner. I was a touch disappointed that the silver coloured metal looks quite dull, but it is a neutral shade that does not detract attention from the sweet treats that it is holding on display!

This stand can hold up to 23 cupcakes, which I thought was a bit of an unusual choice. Most standard cupcake recipes that I know allow for batches of multiples of 6, so you would end up with an odd amount using this display stand. Each tier has a series of holders branching off from the centre section. The bottom two tiers have enough space to fit the normal small sized cupcakes, as well as larger muffin sized cakes. The upper two tiers are too tightly spaced and do not allow enough width or height for anything other than small cupcakes. The holders themselves are quite shallow and not really deep enough to give a firm hold on the cupcakes so they balance in place quite precariously. It is best to ensure that the stand is placed somewhere very stable and secure otherwise it could be at risk of toppling over and spilling cupcakes all over the place if the cakes are not removed cautiously in a Jenga sort of fashion.

Overall I'd say that this cupcake stand is a fair buy as it comes at a bargain price and is a simple way to put on a display of your lovingly baked cupcakes. That said, it doesn't seem to be the best quality and it looks quite basic. If you want something simple that doesn't cost a lot, with the added convenience of taking up little storage space, then I can recommend this Proteam Cupcake Stand as a good option. I actually received another cupcake stand at Christmas which is the one I now use "for best" as it's a more elegant china design that matches my dinner service, but this one still has its place in my kitchen and I will continue to use it as it can hold larger batches of cupcakes and offers some good display options.